Accenture’s 2017 Consumer Survey on Healthcare Cybersecurity and Digital Trust identifies consumers’ experiences with healthcare data breaches and their attitudes toward healthcare data, digital trust, roles and responsibilities, data sharing and breaches.

1. Are You One Breach Away From Losing a Healthcare Consumer?
Accenture 2017 Consumer Survey on Healthcare Cybersecurity and Digital Trust

2. 2
37% 26%
12%
35%
26%
Purchase
items
Fraudulently
bill for care
Fraudulently
receive
medical
care
Fraudulently
fill
prescriptions
Access or
modify
health
records
FIGURE 1.
Victims of medical identity theft report stolen IDs were used for fraudulent activities.
Healthcaredataisbeingstolen
Morethan1in4consumershaveexperiencedabreachoftheirhealthcaredata
One out of four US healthcare consumers (26 percent) has experienced a breach of their
healthcare data, which may include their Social Security number, contact information,
electronic medical record or health insurance ID. Half of those people were victims of
medical identity theft. Of those, most often the stolen identity was used to purchase items
(37 percent) or in other fraudulent activities, such as billing for care, receiving care and
filling prescriptions (Figure 1). Among those who experienced identity theft, most
consumers report the incident cost them an estimated $2,528, on average, per incident.

3. Source: Accenture 2017 Consumer Survey on Healthcare Cybersecurity and Digital Trust
3
Hospital
Urgent care clinic
Pharmacy
Physician's office
Payer
Laboratory
Employer
Retail clinic
Tech/app company
Government
Other
36%
22%
22%
21%
21%
15%
12%
9%
9%
6%
5%
Among those consumers who experienced a breach, one-
third (36 percent) said it occurred in a hospital while one-
fifth (22 percent) said the breach happened at an urgent
care clinic, pharmacy (22 percent), physician’s office (21
percent) or health insurance company that was holding
their data (21 percent). Interestingly, the lowest percentage
of breaches (6 percent) occurred at a government entity—
which is the entity that consumers trust the least to keep
digital health data secure. (Figure 2)
FIGURE 2.
Healthcare data breaches occur across various locations.
Breaches may not happen where consumers expect
LOWEST
6++F100+F
HIGHEST PERCENTAGE OF BREACHES
6%
36%
36++F100+F Hospital
PERCENTAGE OF BREACHES OCCURRED
Government

4. 4
Finding the breach
Half of consumers who experienced a breach found out
about it themselves. Just fewer than half (45 percent)
were proactively notified and about one-third (36 percent)
learned about the breach passively. (Figure 3)
What are healthcare data
thieves taking?
Among those consumers who experienced a breach,
nearly one-third (31 percent) had their Social Security
number stolen. The same percentage had contact
information or electronic medical records compromised.
Biometric identifiers were the data least frequently
compromised in a breach (10 percent).
Source: Accenture 2017 Consumer Survey on Healthcare Cybersecurity and Digital Trust
Noticed error in health records, credit card
statement, credit report, Explanation of
Benefits
FIGURE 3.
Often consumers noticed errors themselves.
8%
ERROR NOTICED BY RESPONDENT50%
45% WAS NOTIFIED PROACTIVELY BY
ENTITY/GOVERNMENT
Received a notice from provider; government
entity informed me
36% LEARNED ABOUT IT PASSIVELY
Heard about it in the news; received
collection letter for services not received
SOME OTHER WAY

5. 5
Source: Accenture 2017 Consumer Survey on Healthcare Cybersecurity and Digital Trust
In response to the breach of their healthcare data, nine
out of 10 (91 percent) consumers took action to
protect their data. They changed passwords or other
credentials (29 percent). Some (24 percent) subscribed
to an identity protection service or added security
software to their computer (20 percent).
Some consumers took action against their providers or
insurance plans. One-quarter of those experiencing a
breach changed healthcare providers (25 percent) and 21
percent changed their insurance company as a result of a
breach. Others sought legal help (19 percent) or involved
the police (14 percent). (Figure 4)
Consumers take action after breaches
29%
25%
24%
21% 20%
19% 14%
12%
9% 5%
Changed
passwords/
credentials
CHANGED HEALTHCARE
PROVIDERS
Subscribed
to identity
protection
service
CHANGED HEALTH
INSURANCE COMPANIES
Installed
security
software
Got legal
help
Involved
police
Reported it to
the org. holding
my data
Other
Nothing
FIGURE 4. Consumers react to a breach in ways that go beyond changing passwords.
91% of consumers took steps in response to a breach

6. Source: Accenture 2017 Consumer Survey on Healthcare Cybersecurity and Digital Trust
6
Most consumers (88 percent) trust their physicians or other
healthcare providers to keep digital healthcare data
secure. Nearly the same percentage of people trust their
pharmacy (85 percent), the hospitals they visit (84
percent), their health insurance company (82 percent) and
diagnostic labs (82 percent). Far fewer trust the tech
companies (57 percent) that develop the wearables and
health apps they use or the government (56 percent).
Consumers don’t trust everyone with health data
Not at all Somewhat
88%52%10% 36%3%
85%52%12% 32%3%
84%54%13% 30%3%
82%54%15% 28%3%
75%54%20%5% 21%
75%54%19%5% 21%
65%49%28%8% 16%
57%43%33%10% 14%
56%40%32%13% 16%
Myphysician(s)
82%54%14%4% 28%
+
+
FIGURE 5:
Consumers have varying degrees of trust in organizations.
MOST TRUSTED
LEAST TRUSTED
56%
88%
88++F100+F
56++F100+F
My physician(s) or other
healthcare providers
Government
My pharmacy
Hospitals I visit
My insurance company
Labs I use for testing
Urgent care or retail clinics
ITsupportat doctor's office
Non-medicalstaff
Techcompanies
Government
Not very much A great deal

7. Source: Accenture 2017 Consumer Survey on Healthcare Cybersecurity and Digital Trust
7
Provider 58%16%4% 22%
Health
insurance
company
57%18%4% 22%
Health
app/device
company
46%28%8% 17%
Confidence lies in traditional healthcare
relationships
A majority of US consumers have at least some confidence in the digital data security measures their
providers and insurers are taking, 80 percent and 79 percent, respectively. Fewer (63 percent) are
confident in the security measures that health app and device companies have taken to protect
privacy and secure health data—only 17 percent are very confident in these companies. (Figure 6)
Not at all confident Somewhat confident Very confidentNot very confident
FIGURE 6.
Healthcare consumers have greater confidence in the security measures taken
by providers and insurers than in those by app/device companies.

8. 8
12%
Much more
24%
21%
A little
less
13%
Much less
Healthcare data breaches can harm digital trust
FIGURE 7. After a breach, consumers report how it
impacted their trust in the organization.
29%
A little
more
In response to the breach, nine out of 10 (91 percent)
consumers reported that the company holding their data
took some action. Three-quarters (76 percent) felt the breach
was handled “very well” or “somewhat well.”
Interestingly, following a breach, 41 percent of consumers
gained trust in the organization, 24 percent reported no
change in their trust and 34 percent lost trust. (Figure 7)
About as much as
before
Source: Accenture 2017 Consumer Survey on Healthcare Cybersecurity and Digital Trust

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METHODOLOGY
Accenture 2017 Consumer Survey: Healthcare Cybersecurity and Digital Trust
Accenture commissioned a seven-country survey of 7,580 consumers ages 18+ to assess their
attitudes toward healthcare data, digital trust, roles and responsibilities, data sharing and breaches.
The online survey included consumers across seven countries: Australia (1,000), Brazil (1,000),
England (1,000), Norway (800), Saudi Arabia (850), Singapore (930) and the United States (2,000).
The survey was conducted by Nielsen on behalf of Accenture between November 2016 and January
2017. The analysis provided comparisons by country, sector, age and use.
See the full U.S. findings here:
http://www.accenture.com/HealthCyber2017